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The Sun King's reputation still stands on his reign, rich in art and literature, his brilliant court and invincible armies. He was in power for 72 years, the longest reign of any monarch in European history; he made France the leading European power, set up the lavish palace of Versailles to be sure the rebellious nobility would always be before his eyes, and consolidated a system of absolute monarchical rule in France that endured until the French Revolution.

Louis XI: this rebellious king was first called "The Prudent", in reference to his cunning ways, and then, "The Universal Spider" when it appeared that his ceaseless intrigues had turned into full-blown webs of plots and conspiracies. Learn how the Cunning King of France was able to eliminate his rebellious vassals, expand royal power, and strengthen the economic development of his country, all through the power of isolating treaties, precise timing, and intense diplomatic activities.

Henry IV of France, also known as the "Good King Henry", was King of France from 1589 to 1610. Born a Catholic but raised a Protestant, he barely escaped assassination in the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre, and later led Protestant forces against the royal army, before being called to the French succession upon the death of his cousin Henry III.

De toute la monarchie, il reste dans la bouche du peuple un nom - Henri IV - et deux chansons - "Charmante Gabrielle" et "Malbrouk s'en va-t-en guerre". Ah ! il est resté un mot aussi : la poule au pot.

À la fin de l'an 1693, toute la France est en crise, dévastée par la famine et la corruption d'un absolutisme à la dérive. François de Salignac de la Mothe, dit Fénelon, est alors précepteur du petit-fils du Roi Soleil. Saisi de rage et d'effroi devant la situation catastrophique, il prend la plume pour interpeller le tout-puissant souverain dans un réquisitoire féroce. Sa violence étonnante et ses attaques frontales sont renforcées par un style irréprochable, qui fait de ce texte historique un chef-d'œuvre de l'histoire du pamphlet, et un manuel de gouvernance d'une clarté incomparable.

Comment un pauvre peintre raté, qui gagnait péniblement de quoi manger en vendant ses tableaux dans la rue, a-t-il pu prendre la tête d'une grande puissance européenne et galvaniser les foules jusqu'à l'impensable ? Comment a-t-il pu s'imposer à une élite politique cultivée jusqu'à transformer les détenteurs du pouvoir en brutes nazies ? De quelles armes celui qui n'était personne s'est-il servi pour devenir l'un des plus grands dictateurs de l'Histoire ?

Understand a crucial part of the history of French monarchy, with this collection of portraits of some of the most spectacular rulers of France. This catalog lists the kings named Louis, from Louis XIII the Just who stood up against political intrigues, to Louis XVIII who reigned during the Restauration of the French Monarchy after the fall of Emperor Napoleon. For each one of these Kings, you will find a detailed description of the style of his reign and his political achievements.

The History of France: from Louis II to Louis XVIII: Understand a crucial part of the history of French monarchy, with this collection of portraits of some of the most spectacular rulers of France. This catalog lists the kings named Louis, from Louis II (877-879), a king whose wisdom was greater than his authority, to Louis XVIII who reigned during the Restauration of the French Monarchy after the fall of Emperor Napoleon. For each one of these Kings, you will find a detailed description of the style of his reign and his political achievements.

Discover the fundamentals of the French republic with two essentials. "The French declaration of the rights of Man and of the Citizen" has been of tremendous influence on every democracy ever since; "La Marseillaise", which has been called "the greatest national anthem in the world", is a powerful and inspiring cry for battle and freedom. "The Declaration of the rights of Man and of the Citizen" introduce the idea that human rights are a feature of human nature itself; it is the first time the rights of man were said to be universal, without distinction of race or religion. This was the idea used to create a nation of free individuals equally protected by law, and it is still the basis of many democracies today.

Marie Antoinette was a child of 14 when she was made to leave her family and country to become the wife of another child, France's 15-year-old King Louis the XVI. Far from home and suddenly thrust not only into the role of a woman and wife, but of a queen, Marie Antoinette lived an astonishing, though short, existence.

Après l'immense succès de "Métronome", Lorànt Deutsch met une nouvelle fois son formidable talent de conteur au service de l'Histoire de notre pays. Des voies romaines aux sentiers de Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle, le comédien nous entraîne dans une promenade érudite et passionnante sur ces routes qui ont façonné la France. On s'émerveille avec lui des vestiges de notre passé, on frémit des terribles crimes qui l'ont accompagné et on se régale des innombrables anecdotes romanesques qui parsèment son récit.

"Paroles de Gueules Noires" est l'unique témoignage sonore de mineurs et de leurs femmes, pour que la mémoire d'un métier, d'une culture, d'une collectivité ne s'efface pas. Ces témoignages nous font entrer de plain-pied dans l'aventure humaine de la France industrielle du XXe siècle.

Depuis les années 50, des enseignants ont recueilli des témoignages en s'adressant aussi bien à des anonymes qu'à des acteurs incontournables. Ces enregistrements, morceaux d'histoires vécues, constituent une mémoire orale dont le caractère humain lui confère un statut de document historique vivant. Les auteurs et l'éditeur de cette publication n'ignorent pas qu'un témoignage ne peut être transformé en objet d'histoire qu'à la condition de le croiser avec d'autres informations et de le passer au crible de la critique.

In the autumn of 1943, André Boulloche became de Gaulle's military delegate in Paris, coordinating all the Resistance movements in the nine northern regions of France only to be betrayed by one of his associates, arrested, wounded by the Gestapo, and taken prisoner. His sisters carried on the fight without him until the end of the war. André survived three concentration camps and later became a prominent French politician who devoted the rest of his life to reconciliation of France and Germany.

On July 9, 1755, British and colonial troops under the command of General Edward Braddock suffered a crushing defeat to French and Native American enemy forces in Ohio Country. Known as the Battle of the Monongahela, the loss altered the trajectory of the Seven Years' War in America, escalating the fighting and shifting the balance of power. An unprecedented rout of a modern and powerful British army by a predominantly Indian force, Monongahela shocked the colonial world.

Louis XVI is one of the most famous kings of France, but for reasons he would have much rather avoided. Coming of age in the wake of the reign of the Sun King, Louis XIV, and his father, Louis XV, Louis XVI initially intended to be one of France's most enlightened kings. Instead, he was destined to be the only French king ever executed. Indeed, it is his death and his role in fomenting the French Revolution (along with his infamous queen, Marie Antoinette) that continue to play the central role in Louis XVI's legacy.

One of the towering figures of the age was Jean Jacques Rousseau, whose works were essential to the ideological developments of the 18th century. The prestige of French literature in the 18th century resides especially in its revolutionary character; while the writers of the previous century used to support the social order through their works and showed sympathy and even attempted to explain the political order of the time.

The Enlightenment is looked upon fondly, and it serves to reinforce the notion that the present is superior to the past, but things did not change as rapidly or as completely as many believe. In fact, some recent historians have challenged the belief that the Enlightenment was responsible for the French Revolution, which is a vital issue when it comes to Voltaire. After all, Voltaire, as his contemporaries and as most of his modern listeners know him, is widely regarded as the pinnacle of Enlightenment thought.

Though it may be hard to believe today, the Eiffel Tower was initially met with derision by many Frenchmen, some of whom compared it to the Tower of Babel and complained that the “useless and monstrous” structure would obscure treasures such as Notre Dame. In response to such criticisms, Eiffel himself pointed out, “Can one think that because we are engineers, beauty does not preoccupy us or that we do not try to build beautiful, as well as solid and long lasting structures? Aren't the genuine functions of strength always in keeping with unwritten conditions of harmony?

In an age where it was difficult to steer clear of a king's wrath and keep one's head for their entire life, Armand Jean du Plessis managed to become the power behind a king. The royal courts of 17th and 18th century France were famed for powerful and versatile Ministers like Talleyrand and the Comte de Vergennes, yet none have held as much sway like the man best known to the world today as Cardinal Richelieu.